This review is being written by someone who may very well be the only
person on planet Earth that genuinely loves this movie. But, why,
though? I can tell the difference between quality acting and
storytelling, and, well, this movie. Aw, who the hell knows? I guess I
just got a thing for the obscure. But Electric Shades Of Grey is more
than just an inept Exploitation obscurity, with really, really lousy
acting... Alright, fine!! That pretty much the size of it, but then
again, I never claimed to have good taste in bad cinema. Whether this
is really that bad of a movie, or not, is a matter of opinion, but
really, what good did it do to wait 30 years before releasing it?

Electric Shades of Grey begins in a way that a movie of this type
should, with an accidental acid trip. A polite but rather
self-righteous priest, with questionable hair named John drinks some
cola spiked by some fun-lovin' hippie kids. After an extremely
mind-bending day, bewildered and discouraged with religion, and life in
general John quits the church and embarks on a road trip of
self-discovery. After a while, John comes across a hitchhiker, a
gorgeous hippie chick named Sunny. Of course he gives her a ride, the
two hit it off just fine, deciding to hang together, camping out at
night, getting high, really enjoying life. After an intense day
involving birth, death and racism, Sunny professes her love for John.
To her, John represents what love is all about. Unfortunately our
ex-priest is seemingly still a bit cranky over his mind being shattered
by LSD and whatnot, so not only does he turn the poor girl down, but
he's rather cruel about it. Heartbroken, Sunny cuts out early the next
morning, before John is awake, and naturally, after it's too late, our
bewildered priest has a change of heart and from then on dedicates the
remainder of his road trip to reuniting with Sunny, a potential soul
mate. Does he find her? Does he just get high and give up? Or does
everything just go straight to hell? To find out, pick up this
under-appreciated obscurity from the good people at Something Weird
Video.

Electric Shades of Grey aka The Psychedelic Priest is a masterpiece. no
offense to the late, great Dennis Hopper but Forget about Easy Rider.
Electric Shades of Grey represents that era in a much deeper, more
realistic way. It's also more amateur, and raw, and less tampered with
(no script), so naturally it seems more real. A very worthwhile DVD,
part of a double feature, along with The Hooked Generation. Even a
commentary track is provided by Frank Henenlotter, and director William
Grefe', which was lovely, although, they did spend 90% of the duration
talking about other stuff, which is a shame, considering how unknown
this film is. Nonetheless, Electric Shades Of Grey is a pleasant,
little gem for those who don't take life (or movies) too seriously, but
also for those with a sentimental side, and maybe a soft spot for
drug/hippie movies with heart. 7/10

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